Meaningful Returns

This week is Book Fair week at my sons’ school, and I have some observations:

• Looking forward to something is its own gift. The dates have been circled on their calendars for weeks now, and they cannot wait for their day in the library to pick out some books.
• Convenience is overrated. Each of the books at the book fair could have been purchased weeks or months ago on Amazon. But because looking forward to something is its own gift, and because introducing our senses (the feel and smell of books in a space our bodies enjoy occupying) is inimitable, convenience should not be our primary mode of consumption.
• Planning is important. Each boy has worked to set a budget with us for what they would like to be able to spend at the book fair. This amount is preloaded onto a digital wallet and they won’t be able to go over it. They have some of their own money in the game, and this has led to some important decision-making around which books they think will make the cut.
• Buying can be joyful. Buying is presented to us as inherently joyful, but we know from experience this is not the case. Buying often starts out feeling something like joyful, but quickly transitions into a sort of emotional bloatedness. But if we are buying something we love (books!), allowing time to pass and gratification to be delayed, choosing the full experience over convenience, and spending according to a reasonable budget–well, that type of buying is bloat-free and lasting joy.